Biomedical subjects

Shuji Hashimoto

Publications and source records attributed to Shuji Hashimoto.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2005

Bias of vaccination coverage in a household questionnaire survey in Japan.

BACKGROUND: Although a household questionnaire survey is important for estimating vaccination coverage, it raises several problematic issues. METHODS: A household survey was conducted on 900 subjects aged 2, 4, and 6 years living in Obu City, Japan, and a second survey for non-respondents to the first survey was then conducted. Questionnaires bearing a subject's name were used for half of the subjects, while the others were anonymous (the named and nameless groups, respectively). The vaccination dates of six kinds of vaccines, including poliovirus and measles vaccine, for those in the named group were reviewed using the administrative records at the Obu City Health Center. RESULTS: The response rate was 70.1% in the first survey and 84.1% in the first and second surveys combined. The response rate for both groups was nearly equal. Based on administrative records in the named group, the vaccination coverage in the respondents was 0.9-2.9% higher than that in total subjects, and that in the respondents to the first survey was 0.8-4.9% higher. There were very few inconsistencies in the vaccination status between responses to the questionnaire and data of administrative records among respondents in the named group. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggested that vaccination coverage from a household questionnaire survey in Japan might not be extremely biased by either non-responses or incorrect answers.

Bias↗

PubMed2005

Medical history of circulatory diseases and colorectal cancer death in the JACC Study.

BACKGROUND: Host factors expressed by individual past medical history of hypertension, stroke, and myocardial infarction may have a relationship with colorectal cancer. METHODS: As part of the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study (JACC Study) for the Evaluation of Cancer Risk sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan (Monbusho), we conducted a follow-up study of 110,792 Japanese inhabitants aged 40-79 years to reveal the relationship of past medical history of hypertension, stroke, and myocardial infarction at the baseline in 1988-1990 with colorectal cancer death for about 10 years up to the end of 1999. RESULTS: Past medical history of hypertension associated with an increased risk of female rectal cancer when analyzing all cancer cases with adjustment for age, body mass index, and exercise (hazard ratio [HR]=1.97, 95% confidence interval [CI]; 1.13-3.43). Past medical history of myocardial infarction was also an increased risk for female rectal cancer (HR=3.05, 95% CI; 1.28-7.28). Females who had a medical history of stroke had increased risk of rectal cancer without statistical significance. CONCLUSION: There was a positive association of past medical history of hypertension and myocardial infarction and an increased risk of rectal cancer in women.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Alcohol consumption and colorectal cancer risk: findings from the JACC Study.

BACKGROUND: Because alcohol drinking is a potential risk factor for colorectal cancer, the trend in alcohol consumption in Japan may partly explain the increase in incidence and mortality rates of this malignancy until 1990-1995. METHODS: We analyzed data from the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study. From 1988 to 1990, 23,708 men and 34,028 women, aged 40-79 years, completed a questionnaire on lifestyle factors including drinking habits. Incidence rate ratios (IRR) were estimated by using proportional hazards models. RESULTS: During the mean follow-up of 7.6 years through December 1997, we documented 418 incidents of colon cancer and 211 of rectal cancer. Male ex- or current drinkers demonstrated a twofold risk for colon cancer compared with nondrinkers: the multivariate-adjusted IRR was 2.01 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09-3.68) for ex-drinkers and 1.97 (95% CI: 1.28-3.03) for current drinkers. The doseresponse relationship between alcohol consumption and the risk, however, was not clear. Female exdrinkers were at an increased risk without statistical significance. For rectal cancer, we found a slightly lower risk in light current drinkers who consumed less than 22 g ethanol per day: the multivariate IRR was 0.61 (95% CI: 0.33-1.13) for men and 0.69 (95% CI: 0.27-1.74) for women. Although the IRR for all current drinkers was almost unity in men, an increasing trend in risk was detected with increasing alcohol consumption in current drinkers (trend p=0.027). CONCLUSIONS: Taking the findings from our study and other prospective investigations into consideration, more attention should be paid to alcohol consumption in the prevention of colon cancer in Japan.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Glucose intolerance and colorectal cancer risk in a nested case-control study among Japanese People.

BACKGROUND: Glucose intolerance may increase the risk of developing colorectal cancer. METHODS: In a sero-epidemiological nested case-control study, conducted as part of the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study (JACC Study) for Evaluation of Cancer Risk, we measured serum glycoalbumin in 123 patients with colorectal cancer and 279 controls. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate the risk of colorectal cancer. RESULTS: There were trends towards an association between high levels of glycoalbumin and an increased risk of colorectal cancer in men (odds ratio [OR]=2.39; 95% confidence interval [CI]; 0.89- 6.36) and between high levels of glycoalbumin and a decreased risk of colorectal cancer in women (OR=0.41; 95% CI, 0.14-1.04). CONCLUSIONS: A high level of glycoalbumin may increase the risk of colorectal cancer in men. The finding that high levels of glycoalbumin in women decreased their risk of colorectal cancer was inconsistent with previous reports, and may have been the result of limitations in the procedure in selecting samples and statistical power.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Colorectal cancer and serum C-reactive protein levels: a case-control study nested in the JACC Study.

BACKGROUND: Recently, it has been hypothesized that inflammation increases the risk of colorectal cancer. We investigated whether serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a biomarker of inflammation, are associated with colorectal cancer, using serum samples collected in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study (JACC Study). METHODS: We conducted a nested case-control study in the JACC Study, investigating the relationship between the risk for colorectal cancer and serum levels of CRP determined by a high-sensitivity CRP enzyme immunoassay. The subjects recruited were 141 patients with colorectal cancer (63 males and 78 females) and 327 controls with no history of cancer (148 males and 179 females). Each case of colorectal cancer was matched for sex, age and participating institution to 2 or 3 controls. We used ttest to analyze mean differences in CRP levels between colorectal cancer cases and controls. Odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a conditional logistic regression model after adjusting for the potential confounding factors. RESULTS: Serum CRP levels were not clearly associated with the risk of colorectal cancer. The OR of the highest serum CRP levels was 1.18 (95% CI: 0.68-2.06) for colorectal cancer and 1.42 (95% CI: 0.73-2.74) for colon cancer, compared to subjects with lowest serum levels. The OR for incidence of colorectal cancer showed a similar trend, but the difference was not significant. Thus, high serum CRP levels did not appear to increase the risk of colorectal cancer. CONCLUSIONS: The present results suggest that high serum CRP levels are not associated with the risk of colorectal cancer in the JACC Study.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Change in food intake frequency at five years after baseline in the JACC study.

BACKGROUND: In a cohort study, information on an individual is taken at baseline, after which it usually remains fixed. There is some risk that this will lead to misclassification and cause weakened or biased results. To prevent such distortion, following up of exposure is important, although it is still scarce in practice. METHODS: In the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer Risk (JACC Study) sponsored by Monbusho (Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan), 37,838 (14,531 males and 23,307 females) subjects out of a cohort of 127,477 inhabitants answered an interim questionnaire on food intake frequency consisting of 33 items about five years after registration. The long-term reproducibility was assessed using Spearman's correlation coefficients and agreement. From data at two time points, longitudinal change, age effect, and secular trend were examined. Subjective changes in these items at the time of the interim survey were also compared to longitudinal changes. RESULTS: Spearman's correlation coefficients varied from 0.27 (fruit juice in males) to 0.55 (beef in females and milk in males), and agreement from 29.9% (fruit juice in males) to 61.4% (liver in females). Correlation was relatively stronger in meat and dairy products and weaker in vegetables and fruits. In both males and females, most increased food item was edible wild plants followed by confectioneries (males) and yogurt (females). CONCLUSION: Over five years, food intake was considerably changed. These interim data could be used for a long-term follow-up study to prevent the results becoming weakened or biased.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Smoking and drinking habits five years after baseline in the JACC study.

BACKGROUND: Observing longitudinal changes in smoking and drinking habits is important for evaluating the risk of incidence and death from cancer or other diseases in a cohort study. METHODS: Smoking and drinking habits at baseline and about five years later among 18,312 males and 28,338 females were obtained from the baseline and interim surveys in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer Risk (JACC Study) sponsored by Monbusho (Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan). Changes in smoking and drinking habits between the two surveys were observed. Odds ratios for quitting these habits at interim survey were estimated. RESULTS: Percentages of current smokers at baseline and interim surveys were 51.0% and 45.5% in males, and 5.2% and 4.8% in females, respectively. Percentages of current drinkers at baseline and interim surveys were 78.0% and 73.2% in males, and 29.5% and 23.5% in females, respectively. The number of cigarettes per day among male current smokers and the usual amount of alcohol consumed on each occasion among current drinkers decreased between the two surveys. Odds ratios for smoking cessation increased with age at baseline and decreased with the number of cigarettes per day at baseline. Odds ratios for drinking cessation increased with age at baseline and decreased with the usual amount of alcohol consumed on each occasion at baseline. CONCLUSION: The decrease in smoking and drinking habits was observed during the five-year follow-up period. Higher age and lower levels of exposure were associated with quitting smoking or drinking.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Stability of frozen serum levels of insulin-like growth factor-I, insulin-like growth factor-II, insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3, transforming growth factor beta, soluble Fas, and superoxide dismutase activity for the JACC study.

BACKGROUND: Subjects of the Japan Collaborate Cohort Study (JACC Study) gave peripheral blood samples collected between 1988 and 1990. We conducted to investigate whether levels of serum components measured after 9 years of frozen storage are stable or not. METHODS: To assess the degradation of frozen serum components in the JACC Study, we compared levels of various components (IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP-3, TGF-beta 1, sFas, and total SOD activity) between fresh and stored sera collected from other inhabitants. Serum levels of constituents were measured by immunoradiometric assay (IGF-I, IGF-II and IGFBP-3), quantitative enzyme immunoassay (TGF-beta1), enzyme-linked immuno-adsorbent assay (sFas), and an improved nitrite method (SOD activity). RESULTS: The coefficients of variation for intra- and inter-assay precisions of the measurements were less than 9%. Levels of IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP-3, TGF-beta 1 and sFas in sera after storage for 9 years at--80 degrees C were similar to those of fresh sera newly collected from inhabitants. The distributions of serum IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP-3, TGF-beta 1, sFas and SOD activity for specimens collected from different individuals tended to be similar to those of serum levels for frozen specimens collected from different individuals and stored for 9 years. CONCLUSIONS: There was no statistically significant difference in distribution of measured values of IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP-3, TGF-beta 1, and sFas between newly collected sera and frozen specimens stored for 9 years. Thus, measurements of these serum constituents of specimens stored for the JACC Study can be reliably used in nested case-control study.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Multigenerational family structure in Japanese society: impacts on stress and health behaviors among women and men.

Rapid population aging in Japan has led to rising demands for informal care giving. Traditionally, care giving for aging parents has fallen disproportionately on the shoulders of women living in multigenerational households. However, rising labor force participation by Japanese women, declining marriage and fertility rates, and women's changing expectations have combined to produce unprecedented strains on traditional multigenerational households where care giving to elders traditionally takes place. In this paper, we explored gender-specific relationships between family structure, stress and worries, and health behaviors, using linked data from two national surveys conducted in Japan: the 1995 Comprehensive Survey of the Living Conditions of People on Health and Welfare, and the 1995 National Nutrition Survey. We found that women in multigenerational households reported more care-giving worries, and also less future health and financial worries. Living with parents was associated with protective health behaviors (less smoking, less heavy drinking), but also more sedentary behavior among women, while men in "sandwich" families (i.e., living with both parents and children) reported heavier smoking. The association of family structure and health behavior was not mediated by worries. Living alone was associated with worse health for women. These findings suggest gender-specific patterns of worries and health behaviors that reflect both the health-protecting and health-damaging effects of living in multigenerational households.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

A prospective study on the possible association between having children and colon cancer risk: findings from the JACC Study.

If having children is regarded as an exposure in life, its effect on a host could be considered as being due to female sex hormones associated with pregnancy in women and some lifestyle factors associated with large families in both men and women. To explore the roles of having children in the etiology of colon cancer, we examined 36,629 women and 24,877 men aged 40-79 years who completed a questionnaire on the number of children and other lifestyle factors from 1988 to 1990 in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer Risk. During 291,080 and 200,648 person-years of follow-up, we documented 198 female and 202 male incident colon cancers, respectively. After adjusting for some factors known or suspected to modify the risk of colon cancer, compared with the women with no children, the multivariate-adjusted relative risks of colon cancer were 0.74 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.30-1.84) for one child, 1.00 (95% CI: 0.46-2.20) for two, 0.70 (95% CI: 0.31-1.55) for three, and 0.59 (95% CI: 0.26-1.33) for four or more. The risk of colon cancer showed a significantly monotonic decrease with increasing number of children (P value for trend = 0.047). There was no association between the number of children and colon cancer risk among men. From these prospective data, having children may reduce risk of colon cancer among women, but not among men, suggesting that modifications of hormone profiles secondary to pregnancies may influence female colon cancer risk.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

A prospective study of reproductive and menstrual factors and colon cancer risk in Japanese women: findings from the JACC study.

The effects of reproductive factors on the etiology of colon cancer in Asian populations remain unexplored. So we examined 38,420 Japanese women aged 40-79 years who responded to a questionnaire on reproductive and other lifestyle factors from 1988 to 1990 in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer Risk. During an average 7.6 years of follow-up, we documented 207 incident colon cancers. Multivariate analysis indicated that colon cancer risk was likely to be lower among parous women than among nulliparous. Women who had two abortions or more had a 72% higher risk of developing colon cancer [relative risk (RR) 1.72; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.16-2.55; trend P < 0.01] compared with women who never had an abortion. The RR of colon cancer among postmenopausal women significantly decreased with increasing age at menarche (trend P = 0.01). No apparent association between colon cancer and gravida, age at first birth, age at menopause, or duration of menstruation was seen. These prospective data support the hypothesis that female reproductive events modify colon cancer risk, and suggest that reproductive factors, particularly age at menarche and having an abortion, may be of importance in the etiology of colon cancer among Japanese women.

Abortion, Induced↗

PubMed2004

Diet and colorectal cancer mortality: results from the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study.

The relationship between diet and colorectal cancer mortality was analyzed in a prospective study of 45,181 men and 62,643 women aged 40-79 yr enrolled in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study. Between 1988 and 1990, subjects completed a self-administered questionnaire on their sociodemographic characteristics, diet, and other lifestyle habits. During the follow-up period (average 9.9 yr), 284 colon cancer deaths (138 men and 146 women) and 173 rectal cancer deaths (116 men and 57 women) were confirmed. The only significant association of colorectal cancer mortality with vegetable intake was observed between male rectal cancer mortality and green leafy vegetable consumption [hazard ratio (HR) using Cox proportional hazard models = 0.6; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.3-0.9; P for trend = 0.02]. Yogurt intake was also inversely associated with male rectal cancer mortality (HR = 0.5; 95% CI = 0.2-1.0; P for trend = 0.04). Egg consumption was positively associated with male colon cancer mortality (P for trend = 0.04). Women with high fruit consumption had increased colon cancer mortality (HR = 1.6; 95% CI = 1.0-2.6; P for trend = 0.04). It should be noted that this study lacked statistical power due to small sample size and measurement error in the food-frequency questionnaire. Further investigation is therefore necessary to confirm the association between diet and colorectal cancer, especially by subsites and gender.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Risk factors for patients developing a fulminant course with acute myocarditis.

BACKGROUND: A fulminant course can be difficult to predict at the onset of acute myocarditis, so the aim of the present study was to identify the predictive clinical symptoms/signs or laboratory findings. METHODS AND RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients with acute lymphocytic myocarditis, excluding 8 who manifested shock at admission, were studied. The fulminant group was defined as 12 patients who developed shock after admission, requiring intraaortic balloon pumping or percutaneous cardiopulmonary support, and the non-fulminant group comprised the 27 patients without shock. Various parameters at admission were compared between the 2 groups, together with multiple logistic regression analysis, excluding 6 patients with partially missing values. In the fulminant group, C-reactive protein (7.0 +/- 7.0 vs 2.3 +/- 2.2 mg/dl, p<0.01) and creatine kinase (1,147 +/- 876 vs 594 +/- 568 IU/L, p<0.05) concentrations were higher, intraventricular conduction disturbances were more frequent (9/12 vs 7/27 patients, p<0.01) and the left ventricular ejection fraction was lower (40.7 +/- 13.9 vs 50.1 +/- 10.6%, p<0.05) than in the non-fulminant group. In the multiple logistic regression analysis model with the presence/absence of a fulminant course considered as the independent variable, and C-reactive protein, creatine kinase, intraventricular conduction disturbances, and left ventricular ejection fraction as dependent variables, a high-risk group (expected proportion of fulminant course > or = 0.5) and a low-risk group (<0.5) could be differentiated. A fulminant course occurred in 9/13 (69%) patients in the high-risk group, but in only 2/20 (10%) patients in the low risk group (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The risk of a fulminant course of acute myocarditis was high in patients with elevated C-reactive protein, and creatine kinase concentrations, decreased left ventricular ejection fraction, and intraventricular conduction disturbances at the time of admission.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed2004

The characteristics of people requesting HIV antibody tests at public health centers in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The epidemiologic features of those who requested to undergo the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antibody test at public health centers in Japan are still ambiguous, although as a group, they are probably at a high risk to be infected. METHODS: Between April 2001 and March 2002, 14,900 persons visited 131 public health centers that cooperated with this study in relation to the HIV antibody tests. A questionnaire was given to 8,972 persons who agreed to participate in the survey and 5,079 (56.6%) returned the form. Excluding those filled out by persons whose true intent in undergoing the test was the diagnosis of hepatitis C, 4,102 questionnaires were analyzed, individual characteristics examined, and first time visitors and repeaters were compared to assess their behavior and the reasons for of undergoing the test. RESULTS: There were 2,515 (61.3%) males and 1,587 (38.7%) females. The largest age group was composed of 25 to 29 year-olds. Repeaters accounted for 27.2% of all the males and 21.3% of all the females. Their main reason for undergoing the test was anxiety about having contracted an HIV infection through sexual contact with a person of the opposite sex. The proportion of those having sexual contact with males was significantly higher among male repeaters (14.1%) than first timers (8.0%). Among females, the proportion of those who had experience of sexual contact with many and unspecified males was significantly higher for repeaters (39.6%) than first timers (27.3%). CONCLUSION: It was evident from this study that repeaters exist among those who seek to be examined for possible contraction of HIV: they are characterized by risk-taking behavior in contracting an HIV infection through sexual contact.

AIDS Serodiagnosis↗

PubMed2004

Numbers of people with HIV/AIDS reported and not reported to surveillance in Japan.

BACKGROUND: Trends in the numbers of Japanese patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) reported to the HIV/AIDS surveillance system in Japan were examined. We attempted to estimate the cumulative number of Japanese with HIV, including people with HIV not reported to the surveillance. METHODS: Data from the HIV/AIDS surveillance in Japan up to the end of 2002 were available. The number of unreported HIV cases was estimated using the back-calculation method. To evaluate this method, the number of reported HIV cases up to 1996 (before highly active antiretroviral treatments were widely available in Japan) was compared with the number estimated by the same method. RESULTS: The number of AIDS cases who were initially reported as having AIDS without having been reported as HIV-infected markedly increased as did the number of reported HIV cases. The number of AIDS cases who had been initially reported as HIV-infected and who were then reported as AIDS progression increased up to 1996 but decreased in the period of 1997-2002. The cumulative number of people with HIV at the end of 2002 was estimated as 14,000, which was 4.2 times higher than the number of reported HIV cases. The cumulative number of HIV cases reported up to 1996 was nearly equal to the number estimated by the above-mentioned method. CONCLUSIONS: HIV infection would appear to be spreading widely among Japanese population. The number of HIV cases actually reported to surveillance might still be low.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed2004

Occupational class and exposure to job stressors among employed men and women in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between occupational class and exposure to job stressors among employed men and women in Japan remains unclear. METHODS: Data of 16,444 men and 3,078 women were analyzed. The information was obtained from answers to a questionnaire distributed among employees of nine companies in Japan between 1996 and 1998 (average response rate, 85%). The International Standardized Classification of Occupations was used to classify respondents into eight occupational categories. The Job Content Questionnaire was used to measure job demands, job control, worksite support, and job insecurity. The associations between occupational class and job stressors, as well as job strain, were examined controlling for age, education, marital status, chronic medical condition, and personality traits, such as neuroticism and extraversion. RESULTS: Men and women in high-class occupations (e.g., managers and professionals) had significantly greater job control, while job demands and worksite social support were not greatly different among occupations. A clear occupational class gradient in job insecurity was observed in women. A greater prevalence of high job strain was observed in low-class occupations compared to high-class occupations in both men and women. The occupational class gradient in job strain was greater for women. These patterns did not change after controlling for other covariates. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests an occupational class gradient in job strain for employed men and women in Japan. Japanese women workers may have a greater occupational class gradient in job strain and job insecurity than men.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Evaluation of a method for issuing warnings pre-epidemics and epidemics in Japan by infectious diseases surveillance.

BACKGROUND: Simple methods have been developed to warn of pre-epidemics and epidemics in small areas using data of infectious diseases surveillance. Epidemic warnings are made if the index of cases per week per sentinel medical institution is greater than a defined value. A pre-epidemic warning means that an epidemic warning will be given in the following four weeks. While the methods are used routinely for surveillance in Japan, they remain to be validated. METHODS: Infectious diseases surveillance data of influenza-like illness and 12 pediatric diseases in the fiscal year between 1999 and 2001 were used in the analysis. We examined the frequency of warnings, temporal changes in the index before and after the onset of a warning, and the sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value of pre-epidemic warnings. RESULTS: For the majority of the diseases investigated, the proportion of weeks in which a warning was issued ranged between 0% and 10%. In several diseases including influenza-like illness, we observed a rapid increase and gradual decrease in the index before and after a warning. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value of a pre-epidemic warning were 90.4%, 93.7% and 23.9% for influenza-like illness, and ranged between 25.1-54.2%, 86.1-99.2%, and 2.5-20.8% for the pediatric diseases (chickenpox, rubella, measles, and mumps), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The study showed that the methods used for determining whether or not to issue an epidemic warning were satisfactory in some diseases, including influenza-like illness, and may need to be improved in several other diseases.

Communicable Diseases↗

PubMed2004

[Development of a Japanese version of the Modified Questionnaire on the Pulmonary Functional Status and Dyspnea].

A Japanese version of the Pulmonary Functional Status and Dyspnea Questionnaire (PFSDQ-M) was made through a translation-backtranslation procedure under agreement with the original author, Dr. Lareau, SC. Three components of the Japanese version, dyspnea with activities (DA), fatigue with activities (FA), and change experienced by patients with activities (CA), were tested using 63 chronic respiratory disease (CRD) patients. Cronbach's alpha was the same, 0.93, for DA, FA and CA. Average values for DA, FA, and CA were significantly associated with the MRC and BDI scores in 63 patients. In 43 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients, average values for DA, FA, and CA were significantly associated with the % predicted FEV1.0. After 26 patients were randomly selected, the same protocol was repeated with a 10- to 14-day interval to validate the reproducibility of the PFSDQ-M. Correlation coefficients were 0.94, 0.88, and 0.91 for DA, FA, and CA, respectively. Then, 52 patients were randomly selected and the same protocol was repeated with a 6- to 12-month interval to evaluate the sensitivity of PFQD-M. The changes in DA, FA and CA with the 6- to 12-month interval were significantly associated with changes in MRC and TDI. In 37 COPD patients, changes in DA, FA, and CA with the 6- to 12-month interval were significantly associated with the changes in the % predicted FEV1.0. These results show that the Japanese version of PFSDQ-M is valid in its reproducibility and internal consistency, and may also have construct validity and sensitivity for evaluating the functional status and dyspnea of patients with chronic respiratory illness.

Dyspnea↗